For The Sport of It
by Tokyo Kitty
Summary: Women have become too easy a target for Zelos the eternal lady's man. With no challenge left in seducing women Zelos takes to seducing men. Namely Lloyd on a fateful short stay in Altamira. Now can this one time relation blossom into a more long term one?
1. For The Sport of It

For the Sport of It

A Tokyo Kitty Production

Disclaimer: I do not own Tales of Symphonia. If I did…I think I wouldn't change it very much other than giving Yuan a bigger part…(I say this while writing a fic he ISN'T in….lol)

A/N: This idea that popped into my head basically out of nowhere. Mostly it's in response to all the really serious ZelosxLloyd fics out there. Sure, they're fun and some of them are good…but Zelos strikes me as kinda a goofball who takes very little seriously. (Of course this is a huge ruse, I'm well aware of all of his internal problems) But Valentine's Day always puts me in a silly mood as opposed to a serious romance mood, hence this fic is born. 'Course, since it's V Day today this'll undoubtedly be late. Oh well, didn't really have a obviously Valentine's Day theme anyway so I guess it doesn't really matter. Enjoy anyway.

0000

"So…you guys wanna to go to that play later on?" Genis asked looking up from the sand castle he was building on the beaches of Altamira to the group who sat only a short distance away on chairs and towels laid across the ground.

"That sounds like a good idea. We are staying overnight anyway, might as well, enjoy it a little longer." Raine said, nodding in agreement with the ninja from her chair next to Sheena.

"Do you want to come with us Lloyd?" Colette asked. She had been helping Genis with his sand castle and as she stood, and brushed away the sand that had stuck to her swimsuit.

Lloyd opened his eyes to find Colette staring down at him completely filling his line of vision. He had been lying on a towel as well, relaxing in the warm sun but still listening to the conversation. "No thanks. I'm kinda tired; I think I'll just head back to our rooms and relax later. on Lloyd don't be such a spoil sport" Zelos crooned sauntering over to the group. "Where's your usual love for fun and adventure?"

Lloyd sat up now from his previous position, a somewhat bemused scowl on his face. "If my memory's right, it's the same play that was playing _last_ time we were here. And if I know your usual love, the only thing_you'd_ be looking forward to in going to that play is the thrill and adventure of skirt-chasing."

Zelos looked hurt for about a split second before crossing his arms over his bare chest and assuming a rather belligerent stance. "I'm so hurt. To think the only thing you see in me is that?" Zelos went on, his somewhat angry expression molding into a smirk. "...That's only the tip of the iceberg Lloyd."

Lloyd looked taken aback for a second but tried to not let the latter part of the statement phase him. The moment was saved by Genis who once again said "So…the play then?"

"It sounds like a fine idea to me." Regal commented from a spot in the shade of an umbrella. Presea who was sitting also in the shade nodded her consent.

"Well then it's settled!" Sheena said standing up from her towel and stretching.

Colette walked up beside her looking up at the older woman. "Then shouldn't we be heading back to change and have dinner before dark?"

Sheena never got a chance to answer that question as Zelos came up behind them both, filing the space between them, one arm draping over each of their shoulders. "Well, I guess if two of my favorite hunnies are going you can count me in to go ♥"

A vein in Sheena's forehead visibly throbbed and her hands made fists. "No one was asking for _your_ opinion….IDIOT CHOSEN!" She yelled the last part and half the beach turned to stare as she spun around, facing him and smacked him hard across the face.

"NOT THE FACE!!" Zelos shielded himself with his hands but was just a tad too slow for Sheena's reflexes.

0000

Lloyd let out a long sigh closing the door that led from the bathroom and into the main room of the suite. Granted, there was one nice thing about traveling with the Chosen of Tethe'alla. No matter where they went with just a casual smile from Zelos they were given the best room in any hotel or inn.

'Especially if the innkeeper happens to be female…' Lloyd mused with a slight grimace at the other's antics.

His wet hair clung to the back of his neck and looked less spikey than usual after having taken a long bath to wash out all the sand that had clung to his body from being at the beach all day. Now he was clad only in his black tank he wore under his red shirt and his usual over sized pants. Lloyd walked through the room and onto the balcony, out into the salty, cool night air which chilled his wet hair pleasantly. He let out another pleased sigh, leaning against the banister of the balcony looking out at the island city at night.

His thoughts drifted from place to place with no real direction or purpose. He was glad he'd agreed to this much needed vacation with the others. Their adventure had gotten more complicated and trying than Lloyd could have ever dreamed on that day he and Genis had began their journey following Colette out of Iselia and into the desert. Things had seemed so much simpler then. The journey of Regeneration…and then everything in Tethe'alla…and now there were the problems with Kratos-

"Brooding again? Man, it really doesn't suit you to be this reflective." Zelos seemed to appear out of nowhere beside him, leaning against the banister as well.

"Where'd you come from? I thought you went to the play with everyone?" Lloyd asked, somewhat surprised at the redhead's appearance.

"Ahh…you were right, I'd seen that play before…and I kinda think Sheena would kill me if I messed with her anymore today." Zelos shrugged nonchalantly.

Lloyd shook his head and chuckled lightly. "Yeah probably…." Lloyd answered for no real reason at all. They stood on that balcony for a few minutes with the sound of the ocean creating a calming but still rather awkward silence. "Well I think I'm gonna go to bed now anyway." Lloyd said pushing away from the banister and turning to enter the suite again.

"Funny, that's just what I was thinking of doing." Zelos said rather darkly under his breath.

Lloyd still heard it. "What was that?" He asked flopping down on the rather extravagant four-poster bed adorned with thin silks wrapped around the posts that moved lightly in the sea breeze with a rather noticeable thump. Lloyd stretched and folded his arms behind his head again.

"I said I was thinking of doing the same thing." Zelos said louder this time but still rather quietly. He sat down on the bed next to Lloyd soundlessly.

"So uh…shouldn't you change for bed then?" Lloyd asked more to fill the void once again and shake the strange feeling of Zelos staring at him with a sly look.

"Oh so you want it that bad? Well if you insist…" The answer seemed oddly displaced to Lloyd who began to respond with a confused 'what?', but even Lloyd's enhanced reactions couldn't preempt the redhead from rolling over onto him, half resting on the bed half laying on top of Lloyd.

"What…what are you doing Zelos?" When Lloyd had finally regained his voice Zelos had already shifted to a better angle, now leaning over Lloyd's shorter frame, one leg in-between Lloyd's with the other planted on the ground supporting his weight.

"I would think that'd be fairly obvious even to one as dense as you Lloyd." Zelos said, his voice dipping lower than Lloyd could remember ever hearing it. Lloyd was once again jolted out of his state of shock when he felt the silky wetness of Zelos' tongue licking lightly at his neck.

"Whoa!...Zelos, get offa me!" Lloyd demanded, using what little leverage he had to push at Zelos' shoulders eventually forcing Zelos away from his neck.

"What's the problem? You're the one who asked for it…just look at your face!" Zelos retorted, standing back up in front of Lloyd who was splayed rather precariously across the bed, legs dangling off the edge of the bed onto the floor.

Lloyd wanted to ask how the hell Zelos figured he had 'asked for it' but all that came out was "Did I miss something here? I thought you were into girls." He asked confusedly.

"Ah yes…I could see how you might think that…" Zelos seemed thoughtful for a moment one arm crossing his chest while he massaged his chin with the other. Lloyd concluded that Zelos' reaction did not make him feel any better. The brunette had very little time to think about it before Zelos suddenly moved, circling the bed to the other side. "I see how you might think that because that's all you personally see." He explained sitting down on the bed. "You have to understand that chasing women is something of a sport to me. I know it must sound awful to you…" he removed one shoe, "but I must say it gets a little boring." He removed the other. Lloyd was rather transfixed by Zelos' explanation and sat up, pulling himself fully up onto the bed and sitting cross-legged on it.

"You see Lloyd…there's no more sport in it." Zelos flashed Lloyd what could only be described as a dangerous looking smirk that made the brunette blush again for no apparent reason. Lloyd gave no verbal answer so Zelos continued on removing his gloves and throwing them to the floor with his shoes. "All I'm looking for is a sort of challenge. And…no one ever said that challenge had to be found exclusively in women." Zelos now moved in for the kill noticing the rather dazed and confused expression plastered on Lloyd's face. He moved, barely disturbing the bed to sit behind Lloyd, his skinny, lightly callused hands sliding around Lloyd's waist.

"You, my dear swordsman hunny, have presented just that challenge." Zelos whispered against Lloyd's throat before brushing brown locks out of the way to lightly latch onto Lloyd's ear.

This action seemed to once again shake Lloyd out of his stupor and he moved his hands to push Zelos off again but the redhead was faster this time, grabbing Lloyd's wrists in his hands and holding them tightly. Lloyd struggled another minute against Zelos' ministrations fighting back a groan when the redhead sucked lightly on his earlobe. "Zelos...stop it! What exactly are you- trying to do?" Lloyd got out between breaths to control his reactions.

Zelos actually stopped and pulled away slightly giving Lloyd an incredulous look. "You're kidding, Lloyd. Isn't it obvious?" Zelos asked one hand leaving Lloyd's wrist to play lightly with the hem of the thin black tank top. He leaned closer to the brunette again whispering in his ear, "I'm trying…to seduce you." Zelos' warm breath tickled Lloyd's ear and other places that Lloyd decided shouldn't be thought about. In that brief moment of control that Lloyd was trying to hold onto Zelos slipped his hand fully under the shirt, splaying his hand over the brunette's chest instantly shattering his control. Lloyd let out a long moan, slumping against the touch and he could almost feel the grin that was plastered to Zelos' face.

Zelos shivered as well at the sound that escaped Lloyd's mouth relishing the sheer pleasure that emanated from it. 'So worth it…' He smirked against Lloyd's skin.

"That's more like it. Now, just relax…we're on vacation, remember?" Zelos added the last part with a hint of sarcasm, letting go of Lloyd's wrists to better position himself sitting behind the other swordsman.

"What about the others….the play?" Lloyd barely got out as Zelos had now moved both hands under his shirt, one hand tracing the light definition of Lloyd's chest while the other absently traced a nipple.

'Definitely progress if he's only thinking about things that would get in the way.' Zelos smirked again, kissing Lloyd's neck affectionately. "Don't worry about it." He said casually, moving his head away from Lloyd's, his arms unwinding to rest lightly on Lloyd's partially exposed hips. "I left when the play was just starting…they'll be gone for a few more hours." Zelos squeezed the brunette's hips instinctually and was unexpectedly rewarded with Lloyd turning his head and craning his neck to place a chaste kiss on Zelos' cheek.

Zelos genuinely smiled at this and shifted his position a little bit to give Lloyd better access and kissed the other directly on the lips. It started out pretty innocently; Zelos didn't want to scare him away now that he'd finally cornered Lloyd. But, when Lloyd leaned in a little further, pressing his back insistently against Zelos' chest the redhead deepened the kiss instantly pushing his tongue against Lloyd's still partially closed lips.

Lloyd was still new to the whole sex thing or any part of anything mildly sexual really, and the awkward angle of Zelos sitting behind him made the kiss messy with their tongues sliding against each other at odd angles. Zelos seemed to pick up on this and reluctantly pulled away from the kiss, moving around Lloyd to be in front of him. The brunette almost instantly lay down and Zelos was rather surprised to find Lloyd submitting so openly after his struggling.

"You're sure you're okay with this?" Zelos asked out of the blue, hovering over Lloyd. It took the other a moment to realize he was being asked a question and when he did he was slightly confused.

"Since when does my consent matter to you? A minute ago you were perfectly fine with holding me down." Lloyd seemed rather annoyed and Zelos was taken aback by the answer.

Dealing with all shock the way he usually did, Zelos rolled with the punches. "Geez Lloyd, I'm surprised you'd think that of me….'Course I care. I wouldn't want to do anything to hurt you…." Lloyd looked serious for a moment so Zelos changed his tone. "Plus, where's the sport in it if I can't even get you to want me" he added albeit a little sarcastically.

Lloyd flashed Zelos a withered smile. Not really wanting to answer in words, because it seemed too much like something a real lover would say and the young swordsman wasn't quite ready to wrap his head around that one. So instead he opted to lean up on his elbows and kiss Zelos again drawing the redhead down on top of him. As Lloyd had wanted Zelos took this as a cue of consent and began kissing the brunette with new found passion, letting on exactly just how wanting the whole seduction phase had left him. Lloyd moaned gratefully into the redhead's mouth, wrapping bare arms around Zelos' neck.

Zelos' hands snaked back under Lloyd's thin cotton shirt again, running light touches up and down his sides. The brunette groaned into their kiss, grabbing handfuls of the pink sleeveless coat Zelos was wearing, drawing the redhead ever closer. The movement caused Zelos to collapse on top of Lloyd, their hips crashing together harder than he'd meant to. Lloyd groaned partially from the pain of having Zelos' full weight thrown on him.

The redhead quickly sat back up, straddling Lloyd's hips in a kneeling position. He shrugged off the sleeveless coat, throwing it to the foot of the bed. He then rolled completely off of Lloyd, landing with a light thud on the bed next to him. Now, Lloyd sat up looking confused. Zelos caught this and stretched languidly and flashed Lloyd a look that couldn't be explained as anything other than sexual, his hands folding casually behind his head as a support. "Well?" He asked even though the question had no real meaning Lloyd seemed to understand and climbed over so now he was on top of Zelos.

"That's right baby…." Zelos said quietly, his hands roaming Lloyd's sides again before settling on the younger man's hips. The redhead tugged at Lloyd's shirt getting it as far as his shoulders before Lloyd took the hint and removed it the rest of the way. Zelos' eyes roamed Lloyd's chest for a moment which made him slightly nervous so the brunette leaned down to kiss Zelos again. The kiss resumed albeit more timidly because Zelos had given control of the kiss over to Lloyd so he could better concentrate on exploring Lloyd's skin. Becoming frustrated with Lloyd's gentle style the redhead broke the kiss leaning up a bit to nip lightly at Lloyd's neck. He let out a whispered cry and Zelos applied pressure to Lloyd's back with his hands bringing the other to lay flush against him.

Zelos smirked lightly against Lloyd's skin; his fingers lightly toyed with the top of Lloyd's pants near his butt. Not knowing exactly what to do with his hands Lloyd ran them through long bright red locks of hair that were splayed across the pillows. Zelos pulled back, away from Lloyd's neck, looking the other in the eyes. He gave Lloyd a confident smile which the brunette returned with a sloppy looking grin. Keeping eye contact Zelos thrust his hips upward into Lloyd's crotch. His eyes snapped shut at the unexpected friction and let out a long cry. Zelos continued to grind against him as Lloyd's breathing was reduced to breathy pants.

"Ugh….Zelos, please…stop." The brunette moaned into the pillows over Zelos' shoulder. The redhead stopped, pushing Lloyd off of himself until Lloyd was lying on his side on the bed.

"What's wrong? Do you want to stop?" Zelos asked simply, but true concern covered his features as he looked at Lloyd.

"No it's not that it's just…." Lloyd stalled a bright blush spreading across his face. Zelos resisted the incredible urge to smirk at the others blush and kept a serious face. "It was…too good." The blush seemed to get ten times worse and Zelos could even feel a little heat rushing to his own face.

"Do you want more?" Zelos asked casually, pushing lightly on the other's hip until Lloyd rolled over onto his back. Lloyd nodded lightly and mumbled something and Zelos thought it best to not pursue what the brunette had said and instead straddled Lloyd again. His hands went to the fastenings of Lloyd's pants, the entire time watching Lloyd's face to make sure he didn't freak.

'Definitely a virgin…guess I shouldn't rush any of this then.' Zelos thought, his hand undoing the buttons on Lloyd's pants while he leaned down to kiss Lloyd.

Lloyd met him halfway, leaning up on his elbows to meet Zelos' lips. Knowing that he didn't have half a clue of what to do Zelos immediately took control of the kiss and instead took to coaxing Lloyd to take control by moving his tongue inside the brunette's mouth and then withdrawing until Lloyd tried to kiss back just as strongly.

In this way Zelos finished undoing Lloyd's pants and pulled them down to his knees. His hands returned to the brunette's waist, one hand toying with the elastic of Lloyd's boxers while the other gently massaged his crotch through his underwear. Lloyd moaned Zelos' name throwing his head back against the pillow with eyes scrunched shut. Hearing his name moaned like that went straight to Zelos' ignored crotch and he let out a low growl-like sound pulling the boxers down and gripping Lloyd's now bare hips.

Lloyd's eyes cracked open slightly with enough time to see Zelos scooting down his body and latching on to a nipple. There was a sharp intake of breath and Lloyd snapped his eyes shut again bringing one hand up to his mouth to hide his harsh breathing. Zelos continued to move further down until he reached Lloyd's navel. His touches stopped altogether and Lloyd opened his eyes. "Why'd you stop?" Lloyd asked.

"Do you want more?" Zelos answered Lloyd's question with yet another question.

Lloyd threw his head back against the pillow in frustration. Zelos' more gentle side that felt the need to constantly ask for consent was starting to drive him up the wall. "For the goddess' sake, Zelos, yes! Please…just do something…I don't even care what, just touch me."

Zelos smirked again and sat up. Lloyd's pleading tone was interesting to him and made his efforts all the more worthwhile. "Well since you asked so nicely I suppose I can…" He pulled Lloyd's pants and underwear completely, throwing them onto the floor. Zelos smirked a little knowing full well that he himself was still completely clothed except for shoes, jacket and gloves. Lloyd seemed to finally notice he was completely bare now and blushed again, looking questioningly at Zelos. "Oh…you don't know-" Zelos realized the other had absolutely no idea what was going on and for a second was utterly baffled at Lloyd's previously sheltered lifestyle. "...Turn around on your hands and knees, Lloyd."

Lloyd could hear the sound of metal clinking -Zelos hand taken off his belt, and then there were hands on his hips angling his butt higher in the air. Lloyd closed his eyes tight, expecting pain any second but was surprised to feel Zelos leaning over him, lovingly pushing hair away from his ear. "I'll make it feel real good. Just trust me." He whispered in Lloyd's ear and the hot breath made Lloyd shiver. Zelos pulled away, kneeling behind the brunette. Out of his pocket he pulled a vial of oil and uncorked it, dripping some of the liquid onto his fingers. The vial disappeared back into his pocket and the hand that wasn't covered in oil wrapped around Lloyd's frame and lightly grabbed his cock. Lloyd moaned in reaction, sinking onto his elbows and knees, his butt now higher in the air.

"Just like that hunny...now relax." Zelos said quietly, slipping one finger gently into Lloyd's entrance. As expected, he seized up right away and Zelos began slowly pumping Lloyd's erection, trying to get him to relax. Lloyd let out a shaky sigh into the pillow and Zelos pushed the finger in deeper then began slowly drawing it back out. Before long the pain completely subsided and Zelos added another finger, scissoring the two to stretch the brunette.

Lloyd jumped again a bit at the intrusion and Zelos leaned back over Lloyd, nibbling on his shoulder. The move was coupled with a harder stroke and Lloyd moaned into the pillows again making Zelos smile lightly against the brunette's back. The fingers were withdrawn and Zelos retrieved the vial from his pocket again, opening his pants he spread the contents of the vial onto his own erection.

"Such a beautiful body….did you know that Lloyd?" Zelos put the vial back into his pocket shoving his pants down. He continued, "such smooth skin…" running hands down and up Lloyd's sides as he leaned down over the brunette. Lloyd felt the tip of Zelos' cock rub against his entrance and he took a sharp inhalation of breath.

A hand brushed the hair away from Lloyd's ear. "I promise you, this is going to hurt at first. But trust me that it gets better." Lloyd nodded slowly muttering very quietly, "I trust you….Zelos." Zelos smiled, a pained look crossing his face for a moment that he was glad Lloyd was faced into the pillow so the brunette didn't see.

"That's good." He whispered slowly pushing into Lloyd.

And he was right. It did hurt. Lloyd whimpered into the bedspread, his eyes closed tight in pain. Zelos was at his shoulder again, muttering things in his ear half of which didn't even sound like human language. Zelos continued to push further into him as Lloyd fought the immediate pain that followed. Once seated completely in the other, Zelos wrapped a hand around Lloyd's erection again and stroked slowly. Lloyd let out a moan and lightly pushed back into Zelos' hips and so the redhead started a slow pace to match the strokes.

This continued until Zelos was sure his control was going to snap. Lloyd was so impossibly tight and the redhead's entire existence cried for release. "Please Zelos…faster." The brunette said suddenly. Zelos flattened himself against Lloyd's back, moaning his thanks and began a quicker but still gentle pace. The pain subsided quicker this time and soon Lloyd was pushing back against Zelos, breath coming in ragged pants. Zelos' pace increased, moaning the other's name in a continuous chant against Lloyd's ear.

What Lloyd would have given to see Zelos' face in the throes of passion. He tried to turn his head and his lips collided with Zelos' cheek. The redhead noticed this and changed his position to bring their lips together in an oddly angled kiss. The change in position had caused Zelos' angle to change and when he pushed into Lloyd again stars erupted behind the brunette's eyes and he near screamed into Zelos' mouth. A predatory growl escaped Zelos' mouth into their sloppy kiss. He moved his hand to rub his thumb against the head of Lloyd's cock.

Their kiss eventually broke due to lack of air and Zelos continued to thrust into Lloyd with force groaning his name against the brunette's shoulder. The pleasure was getting to be too much for Lloyd and he made fists in the bedding moaning loudly, his orgasm coming in a single, powerful burst. Zelos rode out Lloyd's pleasure, continuing to stroke the brunette's softening erection. He reached his release with a shaky moan of his own, eventually slumping against Lloyd's tired form, pushing the brunette further into the mattress.

He finally pulled out of the brunette falling to the side into the softness of the bed. Lloyd lay on his stomach trying to catch his breath but looking fully sated. Zelos was just tucking himself back into his pants when there was a knock at the door.

At first he convinced himself it was nothing, perhaps one of the many maids in the hotel. But then it came again accompanied by Sheena's voice.

"Lloyd? Lloyd! Are you in here? The door's locked from the inside…"

Lloyd sat up with a start and stared at Zelos with look of utter horror. Zelos' face must've matched this expression before his cool smirk was plastered on his face again. "Don't worry 'bout it. I'll cover this; you take your clothes and hide in the bathroom. Oh, lock the door." Zelos said quickly and Lloyd jumped into action picking up his discarded clothing and running into the other room.

"I'm coming my dear voluptuous hunny Please, try to wait for me♥?" Zelos said in a sing-song voice. He could hear Sheena sputtering from the other side of the door. Zelos chuckled darkly, pushing the sheets back on the bed to hide Lloyd's seed which was spread across the blankets.

He then walked over to the door trying to get the knots out of his hair on the way. Zelos was now thankful he hadn't taken off his clothes as he opened the door leaning in the door frame with a smirk on his face, grinning at a –just as he figured –very irate Sheena.

"Why'd you lock the door? This is our room too?" She spat.

"Is it?" Zelos rubbed his chin contemplatively. "I wasn't aware of that."

"Who do you think paid for it, idiot Chosen?" She retorted, crossing her arms across her well endowed chest. Zelos stared at this action for a moment. Sheena glared at him catching his stare and turned away slightly.

With not even a sheepish smile at being caught he continued. "Perhaps, but it _was_ me who got us such a good room. But I guess if you ask nicely, I could share it with you♥"

Sheena looked taken aback for a moment before just pushing the 'idiot Chosen' out of the way and entering the room. The rest of the group proceeded after her.

"Where's Lloyd?" Genis asked, looking around the room and finding no trace of the brown-haired swordsman.

"Oh, he's in the bathroom. Don't worry about him." Zelos answered flippantly shooing the mage off with a hand. Genis gave him a disgruntled look but said no more, retiring into the other adjoining room which also had a bedroom.

Sheena walked around the room, an interesting looking on her face. Zelos ignored it and flopped down on a couch in the large main room. "Something smells….off." She said finally.

Zelos was stunned for about two seconds but got up from the couch again, walking over to the open door where the balcony was. "Damn…I was hoping the smell would've disappeared quicker with the sea breeze and all. Ah well, we did do it for a while after all…"

"WHAT???" This time Raine sputtered, coming in on a conversation at way the wrong moment.

"Oh she's gone now, don't worry yourself too much." Zelos answered but that didn't seem to be the answer to the question Raine had in mind.

"Just gotta take a slice out of every city, don't you Zelos??" Sheena appeared again, possibly looking more furious than she did a moment ago.

"Awwww Don't call my character into question, dear Sheena!" He crooned until there was a fist in his face. Zelos' expression immediately changed to one of sultriness. "Why do you ask? Are you jealous♥?"

She slapped him, hard enough that Lloyd all the way in the bathroom heard. Now fully dressed and mildly cleaned off he listened against the door to the happenings in the other room. Deciding that Zelos had endured enough torture for creating the mess that had transpired between them that spawned the awful line of conversation in the other room Lloyd opened the door to find Genis sitting on the bed of the room joined to the bathroom.

"Oh, hey Genis. What's going on?" He casually asked the mage who immediately perked up.

"Not a whole lot. The play was good!" He answered. Lloyd nodded and was about to head into the other room. "Wait! I wouldn't go in there….Zelos and Sheena are having another fight."

"That's alright Genis; I'm partially to blame for the situation anyway." Lloyd answered with a dark smirk that Genis believed resembled some of the looks he'd seen Zelos make.

"Huh?" The half-elf looked befuddled and Lloyd left his young friend in that state and entered the fray in the other room believing that maybe Zelos rubbing off on him wasn't such a bad thing.

0000

AN: Happy Valentines Day everyone! Sorry this is a little late. I started it on V Day I swear. I just can't write anything in one sitting….With the exception of that one Death Note fic I did. Well this was a little fun. I really love working with Zelos and Lloyd is just plain cute. (Maybe I did that and now he's out of character I really hope he's okay) This was my first ToS fic and hopefully it went well. Now onto my harder project for Symphonia. Stay tuned and you might see a KratosxYuan fic (in like two months TT) Mock Trial makes me so busy…..But it gives me a reason to yell "Objection!" with an actual reason and intention so it's all good. Happy Belated Valentines Day everyone!


	2. Part of The Game

Chapter 2: All Part of the Game 

A Tokyo Kitty Production

Disclaimer: Don't own it! I do however "own" this idea. Or at least…my brain likes to think I do.

A/N: So now that I've gotten myself horribly sick my head is a big enough mess that I've come up with a sequel to this thing. Plus, I had a couple people who reviewed saying they wanted more of this pairing so I deliver. Also, the idea just wouldn't leave my head so maybe if I write it I can go infect someone else with the ideas that bounce around my poor fevered brain.

0000

The forest surrounding Ozette was vast. And dark, Lloyd noted, using the Sorcerer's Ring to destroy another plant that grew across the path. They were still a long way from the remote town and from what the swordsman could tell it was almost night. Of course, light was always hard to come by in the forest but even thin rays that were sifting through the dark leafed trees was beginning to wane.

As if to answer his thoughts Raine stepped up beside him. "It seems like it's nearly night. Perhaps we should stop, and set up camp in the forest?" She asked.

"I don't know…this forest is kinda freaky. I'd really rather not stay the night in a place like this." Lloyd answered, activating the sorcerer's ring again to destroy a pile of what looked like rotting grass in their way.

Genis, who'd been listening in on the conversation, piped up, "Please Lloyd! We've been walking through this labyrinth of trees all day! I could've sworn we've come this way before…." Genis looked around at the tall menacing black wooded trees that seemed to only make the impending darkness feel closer.

"I suppose you're right…" Lloyd agreed through deep down he really wanted to push on and just get through the forest already. A little half heartedly he divided jobs in setting up camp and set out around the path looking for firewood.

Dinner passed uneventfully and with far less talking than usual. The darkness and eerie silence of the forest was sobering and the group huddled around the fire not for heat but for light. Even the brightness of the fire was swallowed up by the darkness leaving only about a two meter radius of lit space.

It was only Zelos who seemed to make light of the situation as was his normal custom. When even this got tiresome Lloyd announced they should all try and get some sleep so that when there was once again light they could try and find the way out of the Gaoracchia Forest.

Lloyd wasn't sure what time it was when he felt someone shaking his shoulder. He sat up, rubbing his eyes until they focused on Zelos' form in front of him. "Zelos? What is it?"

Zelos whispered so as not to wake the others sleeping around the fire. "Wanna go for a walk? I can't sleep."

Lloyd gave him an incredulous look. "Are you crazy? Here!? It's impossibly dark!"

"So bring the Sorcerer's Ring for light." Zelos retorted.

"But what about monsters?"

"We can handle it, just bring your sword." Zelos once again responded.

"But!-" Lloyd's voice was getting increasingly louder with his growing frustration and Zelos placed a hand over Lloyd's mouth silencing him. Lloyd groaned in resignation. "Fine, fine I'll go with you….Just not too far, I don't want to get lost."

Zelos gave him a look half between a sloppy grin and his signature smirk. Lloyd only shook his head in response, rubbing his eyes again to chase away sleepiness. Grabbing his swords and the Sorcerer's Ring he got up to follow Zelos who was standing near the edge of the ring of light from the welcoming camp fire that they were leaving behind.

After maybe ten minutes of walking and talking a silence had fallen over them. "So, why'd you want to go out and talk, Zelos?" Lloyd broke the silence activating the Ring again when the light died out.

Zelos casually folded his arms behind his head as they walked. "Ah, no reason really. Just felt like talking is all."

Lloyd chuckled lightly at the randomness of Zelos' actions. He'd gotten used to it along the journey. At first Zelos had seemed almost careless; doing what he wanted just because he could and not really caring about the consequences. But, time had proven to the brunette just how thoughtful Zelos could be, albeit still a little weird and definitely spontaneous.

Unexpected, that was something that could definitely describe the way he'd learned so much about Zelos. The night in Altamira about two weeks back when everyone was out at the play was one of those times. Since then, they hadn't had as much physical contact, maybe a stolen kiss when no one was looking, intentional brushes up against each other accompanied by a knowing smirk (this was mostly on Zelos' part) but for the most part that night had been an isolated experience. Lloyd sort of wished it wouldn't have stayed that way. He'd never admit, but he frequently replayed the memories in his head when there was no one around. Sure, maybe Zelos had been just messing around then, but Lloyd wanted to do it again….These thoughts had been recurring in moments when things weren't so hectic, but voicing it to said redhead was a horse of an entirely different color.

"Hey, I'm getting kinda tired." Zelos said breaking Lloyd out his thoughts.

The statement made Lloyd jump a bit from surprise. He blushed lightly thankful that Zelos couldn't see his blush in the dark. "Do you want to head back?" Lloyd asked.

"Nah, not yet. Maybe we can just rest here." Zelos suggested, sitting down on a nearby stump. Lloyd nodded but it probably wasn't actually seen and leaned up against a large tree next to the stump Zelos was sitting on.

Once again there was a long silence which Zelos eventually broke. "So…I didn't really get to talk to you after Altamira what with everyone kinda appearing like that." Zelos began casually. Lloyd was once again startled as it seemed Zelos was reading his mind. "And I was wondering if it was really okay with you."

Lloyd actually laughed which surprised Zelos. "Are you still on that?" Lloyd asked. "I told you time and time again I was fine with it," his voice grew quieter, "I…I liked it...it was good." The brunette explained with another blush that this time Zelos did see due to their proximity.

Zelos smirked lightly trying to stay slightly serious and not let the compliment go to his head. He stood up from his stump and turned to face Lloyd. The brunette took this as a sign that they were leaving and stood up straight from leaning on the tree. He was pushed back against it a second later, Zelos stepping into his personal space. "Um…Zelos?" Lloyd said awkwardly, looking up into the taller redhead's face which was now only a few inches from his own.

"I was wondering…" He began, brushing hair away from Lloyd's face with a gloved hand and leaning in against the brunette's ear. "I was wondering…if maybe you wanted to do it again." He whispered against the other's ear.

Zelos noted that that move always seemed to have a particularly strong effect as he felt Lloyd practically melt against the tree, letting out a shaky breath. Lloyd's arms wrapped around Zelos' waist and that was all the 'yes' the redhead needed to move to kiss Lloyd full on the lips. The kiss quickly escalated farther than the quick ones they'd shared over the past few weeks, probably because they were truly alone this time. Lloyd's hands wrapped tighter around Zelos while the redhead rested one hand against the tree next to Lloyd's head to support himself. The other hand rubbed up and down Lloyd's torso, through his red shirt.

Lloyd moaned into their kiss, pushing his tongue insistently against Zelos' lips. Surprised by the change in boldness since their last encounter but thoroughly turned on by it Zelos parted his lips and allowed Lloyd to explore his mouth. It was an entirely heady experience to have Lloyd being so controlling and Zelos moaned around Lloyd's tongue flattening himself against Lloyd, pushing the brunette back harder against the tree. Lloyd could feel the tightening of his own pants as well as the heat radiating from Zelos' crotch that was pressed against his lower stomach.

Acting more on the spur of the moment than truly thinking about it because he was sure he'd screw it up then Lloyd broke their kiss scooting back up the tree, he'd been slowly slipping down, and slipped a leg between Zelos' then rubbed his thigh against the bulge forming in Zelos' pants. The reaction was exactly what Lloyd had wanted. Zelos moaned his name loudly, collapsing further onto the brunette, head resting on Lloyd's shoulder panting into his ear. Gaining a little more control of his body, Zelos used his hands to slip the suspenders attached to Lloyd's pants from his shoulders. The redhead immediately attacked the fastenings of the other's pants and Lloyd stopped for a moment to watch Zelos.

The redhead made eye contact giving Lloyd his best smirk. "You've been so good I think you deserve something of a reward." He cooed, pushing Lloyd's pants off which pooled around his feet.

It was at the unfortunate moment that Lloyd realized exactly where they were: in a dark forest, in the middle of the night, with monsters lurking probably not ten meters away from then. The reaction was obvious. Lloyd freaked all of a sudden pushing Zelos' hands away from him muttering something nonsensical.

"Hey, what gives?" Was Zelos' only comment, giving Lloyd a thoroughly confused look.

"Do you even realize where we are?? It's not safe to be doing this here. We could be found out, the others aren't _that_ far, we could be attacked, we're in a FOREST for the goddess's sake!" He totally spazzed and Zelos had to resist the urge to laugh at the brunette totally freaking out, with pants around his ankles still.

"Hey, hey Lloyd chill." Zelos tried to calm the other. When that didn't work very well he lowered himself to his knees in front of Lloyd and used gloved hands to pin Lloyd's hips back against the tree. "Just calm down, okay? Nothing bad is gonna happen."

Not thoroughly convinced but seeing Zelos kneeling in front of him seemed to convince him that maybe it'd be worth it to not just leave. With the fear subsiding he was reminded of the need that was still flowing through his body. Lloyd sighed, relaxing more against the tree. "There…that's more like it…" Zelos muttered, leaning forward to lay tiny kisses on Lloyd's exposed hips right above his boxers. Lloyd's hands moved to grip Zelos' shoulders, digging into the fabric of his coat.

Zelos took this as a go ahead and pulled Lloyd's boxers down quickly, drinking in the view in front of him with a predatory grin. Lloyd blushed heavily trying to ignore Zelos' gaze as he looked the brunette over when he felt a tongue tracing the inside of his thigh. "Wait…what are you-"

"You know perfectly well what I'm doing Lloyd." Zelos cut him off biting lightly on Lloyd's hip teasingly. Lloyd was just about to respond but Zelos cut him off yet again, this time taking the tip of Lloyd's cock into his mouth. Lloyd moaned loudly, bringing a hand from Zelos' shoulder to his own mouth to silence another moan.

With the darkness all around them there was really nowhere else to look but down at Zelos' mouth wrapped around him. Lloyd watched with half lidded eyes as Zelos wrapped his lips further around the shaft, one gloved hand stroking the base of it. The contrast of the silky warmth of Zelos mouth with the slightly rough feel of his hand was driving Lloyd crazy and he thrust into Zelos' mouth only to have his hips paralyzed a moment later by Zelos' other hand pinning his hip against the tree. The redhead did however heed Lloyd's request and took more into his mouth alternating between sucking hard and running his tongue in intricate patterns on the underside. Lloyd's breathing came harshly and the hand that wasn't at his mouth hopelessly trying to suppress the noise he was making moved to cup the back of Zelos' head, lightly grabbing a handful of long red hair.

Zelos groaned in response which sent vibrations up and down Lloyd's cock. He began to bob his head pausing every once in a while at the tip to tease the head with his tongue. Lloyd moaned the redhead's name and gave up entirely on quieting himself, gripping Zelos' shoulder with that hand.

He could tell Lloyd was close and backed off a bit. One of his hands strayed to his own lap, massaging his own need which had been forgotten until now. Zelos deftly unbuttoned his pants and pulled his erection out, stroking it in time to the sucking he was giving Lloyd.

Lloyd watched this with complete fascination. His gaze shifted from Zelos' lips moving up and down on his erection to Zelos' hand, pleasuring himself slowly. Zelos' gaze met Lloyd's for a moment and he smirked around his mouthful which only made Lloyd groan, throwing his head back against the tree, eyes closed in passion.

The brunette's breath came in ragged pants, the redhead's name slipping from his lips every few shallow breaths. Zelos was doing something incredible with his tongue and Lloyd wanted to watch so badly but the pleasure rocketing through his body kept his eyes sealed shut. Zelos could feel Lloyd trying to thrust his hips against his mouth and relaxed the muscles in his throat then let go of the grip he had on Lloyd's hip that had been pinning it to the tree. Lloyd thrust his hips against Zelos' mouth and the redhead concentrated on keeping his gag reflex in check, his own hands now madly stroking his own cock.

Lloyd finally came, feeling Zelos' hands hold his hips still again while the redhead drank in his release. Zelos licked up the last traces of the sticky mess as Lloyd sank back against the tree, coming down from his high. The redhead then pulled Lloyd's boxers back up, snapping Lloyd out of his stupor long enough to help pull up his own pants and fasten them.

Zelos' hands once again returned to his erection, locking eyes with Lloyd and giving him a suggestive smirk. He was figuring to just give Lloyd a little bit of a show but then the brunette was sitting down to be at Zelos' level, his hands covering the redhead's and stopping the motion. For a moment Zelos thought he might return the favor and suck him off, or at least touch him but he never got a chance to see what Lloyd was going to do because they both heard it at the same time.

"Lloyd! Zelos!! Where are you guys?!!" It was Genis' voice and they could both hear the voice approaching and see the moving light. There was a moment where they both looked at each other in horrified fear before Zelos practically threw Lloyd off of him and into the tree, he'd have to apologize for that later, and buttoned up his pants with record speed.

Lloyd got up, rubbing the back of his head where he'd hit the tree, giving Zelos a death glare that went unnoticed. "Yeah! We're over here Genis!" He called back. The light approached quickly and soon revealed Genis and Raine approaching quickly, torches lit with fire.

"What on _earth_ are you two _doing _out here?" Raine sputtered, her anger quite apparent. Genis stepped further away from his older sister; she was really scary when she was angry.

"Uh…." Lloyd paused for a moment trying to remember why they'd originally come out here since 'having sex' was probably not a good answer to tell a thoroughly irate Raine and probably not something Zelos or he wanted out of the bag just yet. "Zelos couldn't sleep, we were out on a walk." He finally explained.

"IN A DARK FOREST BY YOURSELVES??" She nearly screamed.

Zelos stood confidently before the two half elves even though he could still feel his erection nagging at him. This was one of many times he was thankful for how baggy his pants were as neither Raine nor Genis noticed the source of his discomfort. "Chill Raine, we're all adults here." Zelos said giving a sarcastic smirk towards Genis who was only twelve. "Lloyd and I were just on a little walk there's no need to freak out." Zelos explained. This seemed to take Raine out of 'teacher mode' given that she and Zelos were the same age. "Unless that is, you were worried about me, hunny♥?" Zelos smirked in Raine's direction and her fury instantly returned.

"Don't call me that!" She snapped. Zelos had to resist the urge to laugh. Raine got flustered ten times easier than Sheena ever did. Probably because he never really hit on Raine…half elves weren't really his thing.

"Just let it go Professor…he doesn't mean it." Lloyd explained but she didn't stop bristling. "Anyway, it's late and I know at least I'm tired…let's all just head back."

Raine seemed to accept this and they all began to head back to camp. On just the edge of the campfire Zelos grabbed Lloyd's shoulder and held him back. "You owe me one." He whispered low enough that no one heard. Lloyd blushed thoroughly but recovered in time that no one really noticed or at least didn't say anything.

Conversation died down after a while once everyone had nagged him and Zelos enough for going out at night and eventually everyone nodded off to sleep. Lloyd too feel asleep, thoughts of exactly how and when he'd repay what he owed to Zelos filling his dreams.

0000

A/N: That was fun to write. I seriously love this couple. And guess what?? I'm not sick anymore! OMG writing ZelosxLloyd smut cured me! Hahaha…I doubt it, but it doesn't make it any less worth it. In retrospect…I don't think it'd be a fanfic with Zelos in it without the heart marks. They are absolutely necessary. Please don't leave me stupid comments about Zelos most likely not hitting on Raine because she's a half elf and yadda yadda about the racism in Thethe'alla and stuff….I KNOW!! Just leave me alone…I needed to use a heart mark somewhere… Please tell me what you think and there might be more in your future…


	3. Changing the Rules of the Game

Chapter 3: Changing the Rules of the Game

A Tokyo Kitty Production

Disclaimer: This is not mine, however with this chapter I'm going to cross the bridge between cannon and fannon and hopefully make a whole new possible take on the story with a different twist than the game took….I've got my work cut out for me…

HEY YOU! READ THE CAPS LOCKED TEXT!!

WARNING!! IF YOU HAVE NOT BEEN TO FLANOIR THE SECOND TIME OR HAVE NOT SEEN ZELOS'S FLANOIR SCENE THIS IS SPOILERS!! IF YOU KNOW ABOUT ZELOS'S PAST THROUGH SPOILERS THAN YOU ONLY NEED TO HAVE PASSED FLANOIR THE SECOND TIME. Carry on then...

A/N: There will probably only be one more chapter of this fic before I put an end to it (although it feels like I could write this pairing forever and just write 'the sexcapades of Lloyd and Zelos') . This idea is drawing to a close and I can almost hear Yuan sitting in the background crying over the fact I still haven't written his fic. This one's going to get a whole lot more serious as I attempt to integrate the story I've invented with the actual cannon. This is hard to do and I've never actually tried to make it flow seamlessly so please tell me if it's okay. As this is attempting to be cannon, this chapter will use ACTUAL DIALOGUE FROM THE REAL GAME. Call it copyright infringement if you want but I am adding my own inner commentary to weave it with the real game. Please enjoy my hard work.

Post Note: This isn't really anyone's fault per se, but it's something that's been really bugging me. Is it some new thing on to just fave stories but not review? It really makes me unhappy when people just do that. "Oh yay now I've got this writer's fic on my homepage because I like them so much!" Great, that's good for you, but at the end of the day when I check my e-mail to see if people liked my story and all I've got is a handful of notices that people faved my story it kinda makes me sad. The whole reason I post is because I like sharing my work with the world. But when I don't get comments on it I guess I just feel a little used. I don't mean to be so whiny but I really do love reviews. They tell me how to improve, or what it is people like about my stories. So please please please review!

0000

Lloyd stared out the window of his room in Flanoir at the falling snow, too tired to really do much of anything else but too awake to go to bed yet. His mind was far too awake for how tired his body felt. It had been a long day trekking through the unforgiving white wasteland outside the city and even inside the warm room of the inn Lloyd still felt slightly cold. He figured that cold was more from the growing dread of the confrontation with Mithos tomorrow piled on top of the millions of things that constantly buzzed around his head.

The result was that he wasn't able to focus on anything. Thoughts and ideas drifted through his head and he let them pass, staring blankly at the puffy snowflakes that fell in front of him on the other side of the frosted window. Lloyd got up from his chair and lay down on the bed, figuring if he couldn't sleep he'd at least shut his eyes for a little bit. He'd just closed his eyes when there was a knock at the door.

"It's open." He called, keeping his eyes closed, figuring it was just one of his team members.

Zelos walked in, looking his usual sunshine and smiles. "Hey man, you awake?" He asked the teen. Lloyd opened his eyes rubbing one lightly with a gloved hand, sitting up a bit.

"I just got sleepy right now." Lloyd lied. Truthfully, he didn't really feel much in the way of having company tonight. Even from Zelos who he had developed a rather…interesting relationship with. "G'night" He said, flopping down on the pillows dramatically.

Zelos didn't quite know what to make of this. So, he walked over and shook Lloyd's shoulder "Whoa whoa whoa! Don't be like that…." Lloyd opened his eyes again and Zelos smiled lightly. "Come on, let's go talk outside for a bit."

Lloyd was taken aback by this. It wasn't usual that Zelos wanted to 'talk'. Sure, they talked, just like Lloyd talked with everyone else in the group but the look in Zelos's eyes looked far more serious than usual.

He wasn't quite sure what he was getting into by indulging Zelos's request to talk but he let out a steady "Sure", letting Zelos help his tired body out of bed and walking out of the room with Zelos.

It was cold outside. Lloyd should've been expecting this, since the snow was still falling throughout the city and snow normally went hand in hand with the cold. The brunette rubbed his hands together and thought for a moment if Zelos was cold. After all, the redhead wore far fewer layers than he did. Zelos appeared just fine, if not a little distant. He stared out over the snowy town past the soft lights of it and out into the dark abyss of ice and snow beyond the city limits.

They stood on a small balcony-like platform that was outside of the city church. The area was on a hill so the town opened up before them and gave a fantastic view of the entire town. Lloyd leaned a bit on the railing and was about to comment on the snow when Zelos began talking.

"…On that day, Meltokio had a record snowfall. It looked just like this city." Zelos said in a rather nostalgic manner.

'On _what_ day?' Lloyd thought, looking up at the taller man for some explanation. Zelos's gaze remained focused on the falling snow. "What are you talking about all of a sudden?" Lloyd asked after there was silence for a bit.

Zelos's eyes finally focused on Lloyd and he seemed slightly surprised like he hadn't meant to say anything out loud. "Ah, just a story about the past." He smiled lightly. "I suddenly felt like talking about it."

Lloyd couldn't remember Zelos ever talking about things in the past before. Sure, over the many months they'd been traveling or even just the past few months they'd been together they'd talked about where they'd come from. Lloyd had shared all sorts of misadventures of Colette, Genis and himself in Iselia but he'd never gotten much more than the fact that Zelos was born in Meltokio out of the redhead. "Well, if you want to talk, I'm all ears." He said returning Zelos's smile with an honest one of his own.

"It was when I was just a kid…." He began, holding out his hand to catch a few snowflakes that melted in his gloved hand instantly. "I was so excited to see snow for the first time, and I made a snowman in the garden with my mother." Lloyd listened attentively, smiling at the fond memory Zelos had decided to share. Zelos closed his hand to the snowflakes, face suddenly turning more serious. "Then suddenly, the snowman fell apart. Before I knew what was going on, red snow began to fall."

Lloyd thought it was just some sort of metaphor, but asked anyway. "Red…snow?"

"It was my mother's blood. She was murdered." Zelos explained, looking away from Lloyd and out over the snowy landscape. Lloyd gasped in surprise and Zelos was somewhat glad he'd looked away so he wouldn't have to see the brunette's reaction.

"As she fell, she grabbed my shoulder and told me, 'You should never have been born.'" Zelos hadn't really wanted to tell Lloyd the whole story. Or really maybe he hadn't meant to, but it felt so good to get it all out that the words flowed easier than the snow that spilled from the sky onto the town.

"That's…that's horrible!" Lloyd exclaimed. To him, the thought of a parent saying something like that to their own child. As he tried to envision Dirk or someone saying that to him the images were too awful to give more than a seconds glance to them.

"My mother probably loved somebody else." Zelos stated matter of factly. He looked back at Lloyd finally, watching the other's face for any sign of revulsion. Lloyd only looked concerned albeit maybe a little freaked out. "But because of the oracle from Cruxis, she had to marry the Chosen at the time-" Zelos continued, his stern looked changed to something resembling a sardonic smirk. "My father…and the old man had another woman as well."

It was all almost too much for Lloyd to take. Parents were meant to be there for their children, not messed up in some tangled affair like the one Zelos was describing. The thought made him angry and he knew Zelos could see this. "But none of that was your fault!" Lloyd simply didn't understand how any parents could blame their son for something that clearly wasn't their fault.

"…The magic that killed my mother was meant for me." Zelos said coldly. This statement seemed to throw Lloyd's brain into another bout of inner chaos as he uttered a confused "What?"

"They targeted me because I was the next Chosen." This seemed to explain things a little for Lloyd and his face softened lightly. "My mother was caught in the crossfire."

"…." Lloyd thought about all the things Zelos had said. It seemed unreal. Zelos had always seemed so upbeat, careless, so much so almost to the point of recklessness. To see this hidden side of the redhead depressed Lloyd. He looked down at the snow-covered ground and then back up at Zelos. Meeting those sad blue eyes he realized what he was conveying. 'I hate you.' 'You're disgusting.' Of course this wasn't what Lloyd meant at all and he took a deep breath, willing himself to calm down, trying his best to look supportive.

"The one who tried to kill me was Seles's mother. They executed her and Seles was placed under house arrest in the abbey." Zelos look away from Lloyd again, at anything that wasn't Lloyd's face. It was just too hard to look at him right now.

'Zelos's half sister….I forgot about her for a moment there.' Lloyd thought and all of a sudden it all made sense. 'The power of the Chosen…can corrupt those around it.' Lloyd thought, suddenly seeing in his head images of Seles, and the imagined form of her half elf mother; bitter and angry at the betrayal she saw in Zelos's father when he married Zelos's mother. "So that's what happened…." Lloyd murmured more to himself than Zelos who was standing beside him.

"I never wanted to be the Chosen. I spent every moment of my life wishing I could just run away." He said, turning away again to hide the tears that threatened to fall. Oh, how he wanted to run away right now. Away from the one person who now knew the real story. Maybe it was comforting in a way to have Lloyd know; he trusted Lloyd, cared about him. But the feeling of true trust was so new to him that it only brought the feeling of the need to run.

Lloyd searched for what to say. He wanted to reach out, grab Zelos's hand or hug him. But he could see the pain evident in Zelos's stance, even with his face turned away Lloyd knew Zelos was weak right now. "…Chosens lead really difficult lives. I can only imagine what it's like." Lloyd placed a hand on Zelos's shoulder, opting for the least intimate action simply because it seemed the most appropriate. "But…I can still understand how hard it must be."

Zelos chuckled lightly at Lloyd's words. The sound was empty and hollower than Zelos's usual deep laugh. He turned back around facing Lloyd and the brunette's hand dropped from his shoulder back to Lloyd's side. "…Sorry. Kinda hard to think of anything to say to a story like that…right?"

"Don't worry about it." Lloyd shook his head lightly, wanting to say to Zelos how he was glad the redhead felt he could share things like that with him. But, he didn't voice it and instead asked: "But why did you suddenly decide to tell me?"

It was exactly the question Zelos had feared. He wasn't exactly sure as to why. Maybe it was the growing feeling that tonight was the last time they could be together, or that tomorrow felt like the cloud that had forever dwelled over his head was finally going to rain down and swallow him for good. But above all that he could think of one thing: 'because I love you' was what he wanted to say. But all that came out was the hardened response had been rammed into his brain for so many years. "I should've never been born."

"Wh...why do you say that?!" Lloyd all but sputtered, trying not to sound angry. He wasn't really angry with Zelos but more just confused. Of all the things to blame for what had happened in Zelos's life the last thing Lloyd would've thought to blame was Zelos's existence itself.

"I'm not saying I still think that way now." Zelos tried to mend the disintegrating conversation, cutting off Lloyd's train of thought before he could think anymore about what the redhead had said. Zelos crossed his arms partially from the nipping cold and partially for a sense of security he didn't really understand why he needed.

"But...all my life, I've been rejected by my parents, shunned by the Church, and viewed as a threat to the royal family...I guess I just wanted to run away from it all." Once again there was a long silence in which Zelos reflected on that statement. 'Running...isn't that what I'm doing now? I'm just running from what I really want to say and from Lloyd all together.'

"But you're here with us now, right?" Zelos seemed to not hear what Lloyd had said and just stared out over the city at the street lamps.

'But that's the million dollar question, isn't it? Just what exactly am I running toward them if I'm running away from something?' He thought but Lloyd was insistent and the redhead snapped back to attention when he called Zelos's name.

"I dunno." He shrugged rather absent mindedly. He knew he was talking himself in circles but at this point Zelos just didn't care anymore. "Even now, to tell the truth, I get tired of all the problems. Sometimes I think it would be easier if everything and everyone were just destroyed." Martel only knows where that had come from. Even Zelos was surprised slightly that he'd said it. Not that he hadn't thought it before, but he'd said it out loud to the world's biggest optimist.

Of course, Zelos wasn't even a tenth as surprised at the statement as Lloyd was. "Zelos! How can you say that?!" He snapped, balling his hands into tight fists.

'Heh...the same way he does when Kratos patronizes him.' Zelos mused absent-mindedly. He did genuinely regret saying that to Lloyd though. He knew how hard the brunette was fighting for unity and peace and probably hearing something like that from someone he trusted, or at least Zelos hoped Lloyd trusted him, was on the list of worst things that could happen. Zelos felt genuinely sorry to see that beautiful face that only looked more adorable in a sweet smile scrunched up into barely controlled frustration and rage.

"...Did I piss you off?" Zelos asked finally as if he actually couldn't tell himself Lloyd's mood.

"Hell yes!" Zelos knew he was in trouble when Lloyd swore, the kid almost never did. "It'd be a big problem for me if everything was destroyed." Lloyd's voice got quieter and diminished into almost a whisper by the end of the sentence. Zelos was going to ask why, but chalked it up to Lloyd just really not liking the topic of the conversation.

"But think about it. If everything was destroyed, you'd vanish too." You would think Zelos had picked up on the fact that Lloyd wouldn't agree with him on this issue. So whatever possessed Zelos to add on to his previous comment with this one would remain a mystery to him and probably Lloyd too.

However, contrary to what Zelos thought was going to happen –Lloyd punching him or something to an equal effect- the brunette just slowly shook his head 'no'.

Lloyd's brain had derailed somewhere after the point of Zelos saying he wanted to run from everything. Sure, he could understand that, he'd been doing a lot of running with blinders on ever since he started this journey too. Part of him wanted to simply break down and cry and just avoid the conversation all together. But, another part of him wanted to hug Zelos, kiss the fool for thinking it was as simple as just destroying everything and show him just how much everyone- how much _he_ cared about Zelos that the redhead couldn't just throw it all away like that.

"I refuse to vanish." Lloyd said slowly once he'd somewhat regained his composure. "And I don't want anyone else to be destroyed..." Lloyd looked directly at Zelos with dark brown orbs filled with concern. "I want...I want you to live too...Zelos."

Zelos actually met his gaze, cornflower blue eyes softening.

Zelos shifted to a very casual stance and shrugged, switching his voice to a very fake sounding falsetto. "...I think I'm gonna cry." He said dramatically wiping a hand in front of his eye.

Lloyd took a step closer and grabbed that hand by the wrist lowering it from Zelos's face. "Don't make fun of what I'm saying." Lloyd threatened but Zelos could hear a slight sound of playfulness in it all the same. "Tomorrow once we're sure Altessa is okay, I'm going to challenge Mithos to a final battle." For a moment there was fire in Lloyd's eyes. "But if that's the way you feel, destroying everything and all, I'll be worried to bring you along."

Zelos could almost feel the heat of Lloyd's enthusiasm and determination. He'd finally let go of Zelos's wrist, apparently only just realizing he'd still been clinging to it. "So you're going to fight?" Zelos asked although the answer was fairly obvious. "Do you really think you can unite the worlds?"

"I can and I will." Lloyd said confidently, "I'm not going to run away."

'Not from you, Zelos, and not from my mission to unite the worlds because I need to do this.' Lloyd closed his eyes momentarily, deep in thought. 'And I'm not going to let you run away either because...because I need you there beside me...I need you, Zelos.'

In Zelos's opinion the conversation had gotten way too out of hand and way off topic from what he'd originally wanted to talk to Lloyd about. "All right all right, I hear ya." He waved a hand dismissively. "I swear your fervent enthusiasm is enough to melt all the snow in Flanoir." 'And my heart...' he added in his mind.

"But...I'm in. I guess I'll give this not running away thing a shot." He added, although he was sincere it came out in his usual joking voice but Lloyd smiled all the same.

"Haha...Once the world is at peace, you can run away all you like." Lloyd joked.

'There'll be nothing to run from then...' "Gee thanks." Zelos said, using his height advantage on Lloyd to ruffle the brunette's snow covered mess of hair. Lloyd laughed lightly again and swatted Zelos's hands away from his head. Zelos turned partially away from Lloyd, looking back out at the snowy city. "Man, I can't believe I'm joining the weaker side. This isn't like me at all..." He murmured.

"What are you talking about?" Lloyd said from somewhere very near to the redhead's shoulder. The proximity shocked him a bit and Zelos stuttered for a fraction of a second.

"Nothing, just talkin' to myself." He laughed it off. "Anyway, let's get back. It's way too cold out here."

"Yeah." Lloyd replied simply. With that, Zelos turned to head back to the inn and Lloyd followed. Part of the way back, Lloyd reached to hold Zelos's hand as they walked. The redhead's eyes closed slightly and he squeezed Lloyd's hand back wordlessly.

0000

Lloyd let out an appreciative sigh upon entering the comfortable warmth of his room in the inn. He immediately began to brush snow off his red jacket and the pulled off his cold, wet gloves as well as the jacket, draping both over an empty chair. Lloyd kicked off his boots on the way to the bed, flopping down on the old, wooden bed with a loud thunk. Zelos closed the door behind them and sat down on the other chair that Lloyd hadn't thrown his damp clothing on backwards, folding his arms over the backrest of it. He stripped off his own gloves then rubbed his cold hands together, blowing on them occasionally. It wasn't like Zelos needed to be in Lloyd's room. Given, they usually shared a room when they all traveled together, but with half of the group gone to take the doctor to Altessa the four who had stayed behind in Flanoir had their own rooms tonight.

"Tired much?" Zelos remarked, eyeing Lloyd's form sprawled over the bed.

Lloyd sat up like he almost hadn't seen Zelos follow him into the room. "Yeah, a little. Mostly I'm just cold from being out so long." He answered rubbing his bare forearms lightly to illustrate.

Zelos looked from Lloyd, to the fireplace already blazing in front of the bed and lightly quirked an eyebrow at the brunette. He stood up dramatically, toeing off his shoes as he made his way around to the other side of the bed before sitting down on the other side. They sat in silence for a few moments, simply watching the crackling fire.

"Did you really mean what you said?" Lloyd asked at long length looking over at Zelos

"I guess some of it." Zelos responded simply, avoiding Lloyd's gaze.

"I mean about the wanting to destroy everything." Lloyd elaborated.

"Oh..." Zelos said stupidly, trying to come up with an answer. "Well I guess I still think like that sometimes but-"

"I don't want you to die, Zelos." Lloyd interrupted and Zelos looked straight at him having not really expected the outburst. "Because, because I care for you a lot..."

'Stupid!' Lloyd chastised himself. 'Why can I never say what I mean when I talk to you?'

All the same Zelos smiled gently. The smile seemed to emote unspoken understanding and Zelos leaned closer to hug the smaller man, his chin resting on Lloyd's shoulder. "I love you too, Lloyd."

Lloyd's eyes flared open in surprise at Zelos's unexpected empathy but quickly relaxed into the embrace and hugged back, chalking Zelos's perceptiveness up to just one more thing he didn't fully understand about the redhead.

However, Zelos seemed to have plans beyond simple endearment as he nuzzled the brunette's tank top out of the way to better allow him to place light kisses on Lloyd's neck and shoulder. Lloyd sighed lightly finding himself not really in the mood after all the serious talking they'd done but all the same warming up to the idea fairly quickly.

He noticed absent mindedly that Zelos's attention seemed far less frantic than usual. Zelos's attentions switched slowly to nibbling on the shell of Lloyd's ear eliciting a quite moan followed by the brunette finally reciprocating by snaking his arms around Zelos's waist. Zelos hummed approvingly and pulled away from Lloyd's ear to smile somewhat smugly at the brunette. Lloyd was unfazed by the expression that had become quite commonplace on Zelos's face and instead pulled the redhead close to him, kissing him.

Lloyd's hands migrated from Zelos's waist up his back and then into long, red tresses. Zelos groaned into their kiss and sucked lightly on Lloyd's lower lip having been spurred on by the brunette's fervor.

They were soon falling backwards onto the soft sheets of the bed Lloyd for once landing on top. Using the position to his advantage Lloyd pulled the white headband from Zelos's head watching with slight interest as Zelos's hair settled around his face and in a fan across the pillow. Lloyd tenderly brushed the bangs away from Zelos's face, his own expression a study in seriousness.

"What's the matter, baby?" Zelos's voice drawled although there was a definite edge of concern. "The world isn't ending tomorrow, you know."

"Yeah...you're right. It's just-" Lloyd fought for a minute with how to phrase what he meant. "It's just...I feel like I have so much right now." He ran his hand affectionately over Zelos's cheek. "And...I just can't shake the feeling that I stand to lose it all."

Zelos shifted a little under Lloyd. It was so rare to see Lloyd unsure of himself that Zelos was slightly taken aback and wasn't sure how to respond. "I told you Lloyd, I'm not going anywhere."

"I know, I trust you." Lloyd stared tenderly into Zelos's blue eyes and the redhead couldn't help but feel a swell of pride at Lloyd's words. He wasn't sure if anyone had really ever trusted him before.

"Then trust me that we have much more than just tonight, 'kay Lloyd?" Zelos scooted up so he was half sitting up which caused Lloyd to sit on Zelos's knees.

"Okay." Lloyd smiled at Zelos. This kindness and understanding was a side that Lloyd had never really seen before just this night and he had a good feeling that very few people other than him had ever seen it. It made Lloyd feel like he was privy to a secret that only he and Zelos would share.

Zelos's smile changed back into his usual smirk and he ran his hands up Lloyd's hips and then under the hem of his tank top. "Of course, don't let that stop you from screwing me like there's no tomorrow."

Lloyd chuckled lightly and let Zelos remove his tank top before leaning back down over the redhead, pushing Zelos back down into the bed. Zelos's hands roamed the bare skin of Lloyd's back; skin warm to the touch of Zelos's still cold hands. Lloyd shivered; an equal combination of pleasure and the cold touch, leaning down to finally kiss Zelos full on the mouth. He let Zelos take control of the kiss, focusing more on undoing the clasps of the redhead's duster. One of Zelos's hands moved to softly stroke Lloyd's hairline on the back of his neck. Lloyd moaned into their kiss and flattened himself against Zelos rubbing his half naked body against Zelos's still clothed one.

In this position of being on top of Zelos, Lloyd realized it was hard to undress the redhead who he'd rather effectively pinned to the mattress. Zelos seemed to notice the lack of focus in Lloyd's actions and broke the kiss. As if he could read minds Zelos gently rolled Lloyd off of himself and then sat up, kneeling on the bed to remove first the duster and then his tight black tank top. Lloyd had propped himself up on his side using his elbow for support to watch Zelos's impromptu strip show.

Zelos considered for a moment continuing with his show but instead lay down next to Lloyd, wrapping one arm loosely around the other's waist, pulling them together. They kissed again, this time tongues meeting the warm space between mouths. Zelos was pulling Lloyd back on top of himself again and so Lloyd tried to step up to the control Zelos was giving him by running his hands over Zelos's shoulders and then down his sides. Zelos sucked in a quick breath as Lloyd's hands settled on the redhead's hips, squeezing rhythmically. Lloyd used this break to move away from Zelos's mouth and move down to suck on the redhead's neck hard.

Lloyd could feel Zelos's nails biting lightly into his shoulders and the redhead breathily mumbling: "Careful baby, not too hard...what would my other hunnies think?" Lloyd chuckled lightly and moved down to lick slowly and then directly on the Exsphere fused to Zelos's chest. Zelos moaned loudly and although it didn't really feel any different than any other place the image of Lloyd's action combined with the raw sensuality was driving Zelos insane.

Lloyd picked up quite quickly on this and continued to lick around the stone, his hands lightly toying with the redhead's nipples at the same time. Zelos was moaning Lloyd's name now, writhing underneath him and feeling (for once) slightly embarrassed that such a simple touch was getting him off so strongly. He thrust his hips up into Lloyd's chest trying to coax the brunette to move lower to where he truly needed to be touched.

He stopped his ministrations and Zelos accidentally let a low whimper escape when the brunette pulled away. Lloyd smirked in a way that Zelos decided was extremely uncharacteristic him. If that was how he himself looked when he smirked, Zelos was pretty sure he now understood why people smacked him so much.

"What's this?" Lloyd's tone was unusually playful especially for someone who had been so serious only a little earlier. "Is the 'Great Zelos' actually flustered?"

"Come on, Lloyd, stop teasing." Zelos said in an extreme reversal of roles. He was starting to slightly regret giving Lloyd so much control, but only slightly.

Lloyd smiled and laid a quick kiss to Zelos's lips before moving to unbuckle the redhead's pants. Zelos lifted his hips slightly to aid Lloyd in pulling them off. The pants were tossed to the floor with all the other discarded clothing and Lloyd leaned down until he was low enough to lay kisses to the inside of Zelos's creamy white thigh.

Zelos sighed heavily, hands instantly moving to tangle in Lloyd's hair. Almost as quickly, Lloyd's timidness returned with a vengeance and he was glancing up at Zelos as if asking from some form of clearance. Zelos wasn't quite sure what to tell him and his pleasure hazed brain was no help either. With no witty response left in his arsenal he resulted to begging. "Please Lloyd, just do it. I need you so bad right now."

That seemed to spur Lloyd on enough that he moved to sit more resolutely between Zelos's spread legs and take just the very tip into his mouth. Zelos had to bite hard on his lip to keep himself from groaning loudly. Feeling a little more confident again, Lloyd began to take more of Zelos's shaft into his mouth and then began moving back up to the tip.

This time Zelos couldn't stop himself from groaning. Lloyd groaned in return and began using his tongue to stroke the underside. Every little sound the redhead made turned Lloyd on more and he found himself quickly working to make Zelos moan and scream his name with every suck and lick to the other's erection.

"Uhn...oh, Lloyd...wait, stop for a sec." Zelos finally got out through the heat and pleasure flooding his mind. Lloyd pulled away looking nervous so Zelos stroked the brunette's bangs from his eyes. "I don't want to go like this. I want you to take me." He mumbled as Lloyd moved back up Zelos's body until they were once again at eye level.

"Really? I mean...are you sure? I mean usually we-"

"Yeah, Lloyd I'm sure. I trust you totally." He responded kissing Lloyd's cheek.

"But, I don't have anything to-" Lloyd stammered, blushing horribly but Zelos knew what he meant anyway.

"Check that drawer there. Nice inns like this tend to stock hand cream." He answered Lloyd's blundering question and the brunette obediently leaned over to search the drawer. In the mean time, Zelos fought with Lloyd's pants until he finally had them undone and was trying to pull them down. Lloyd moved off of Zelos for only a moment to pull his pants and underwear completely off and then repositioned himself between Zelos's legs.

Still blushing horribly, Lloyd squeezed some of the cream out of the tube and rubbed it over a few fingers before setting it down on the other pillow beside Zelos's head. Lloyd was starting to look unsure of himself again. Zelos noticed this and smoothly picking up the slack mumbled a low 'come here' and grabbed Lloyd's hand that was covered in cream and guided it down between his legs. The natural color was starting to return to Lloyd's face and he pushed one finger slowly into the redhead. Zelos gasped lightly and Lloyd stopped looking nervous.

"It's alright Lloyd I'm not made of glass." Zelos joked, pulling Lloyd closer into a kiss. Lloyd tentatively began to push the finger deeper and then began to move. Zelos bucked his hips, urging Lloyd to go faster with his body as his mouth attacked Lloyd's bared throat. Lloyd switched to using two fingers and Zelos moaned headily, thrusting his hips up into Lloyd's. The brunette groaned deeply as Zelos rubbed their erections together again and again, his own fingers working in Zelos on an off paced rhythm to the thrusting.

Through the haze Zelos managed to grab the cream that was lying on the pillow next to him. He squeezed a good amount onto his hand and reached down between their bodies to stroke Lloyd's erection. The brunette froze for a second and panted Zelos's name lightly having not expected Zelos to touch him. After a moment he began moving his finger inside the redhead again, scissoring them and moving quickly.

They kissed again, getting progressively sloppier as they drove each other more insane with every touch. Zelos finally broke away, telling Lloyd that he was ready. The brunette withdrew his fingers and once again got a little shy but he seemed to be mostly over it as he repositioned himself and hiked Zelos's legs up onto his hips.

"Are you sure?" He asked again.

It took all of Zelos remaining control to not strangle the other swordsman right then and there. "For godssake Lloyd! Yes, I'm sure...just take me already!"

Lloyd slowly pushed into the redhead, biting his bottom lip hard to keep from screaming. He pushed deeper into Zelos, carefully gauging the redhead's reaction the same way he remembered Zelos doing when they had coupled in Altamira. Fully seated inside of him, Lloyd watched Zelos's face waiting for his breathing to slow. It had seemed like an eternity since that day although in reality it had only been a little over a month. Lloyd leaned down, kissing Zelos's cheek lovingly and watching as cornflower blue eyes fluttered open.

"I love you." Lloyd said steadily. He felt Zelos's hand come to cup the side of his face, stroking his cheek absent mindedly. "I want you with me, always."

"I promised you." Zelos responded hoarsely at first. He cleared his throat then continued. "I promised you I'm not going to run away."

Lloyd smiled warmly and kissed Zelos on the mouth. Their lips came crashing together repeatedly and slowly Lloyd began to pull out and then push back in. He slowly began to build a rhythm, punctuated by harsh gasps and moans that interrupted their kissing.

Feeling short of breath and growing more and more frenzied at the feel of being inside Zelos, Lloyd rested his head on Zelos's shoulder, letting out small moans into the pillow. Zelos was in a similar state, groaning for Lloyd to go faster or harder and upon the fulfillment of each request moaning Lloyd's name emphatically. He snaked a hand between their joined bodies wrapping his hand tightly around his own weeping erection and stroking in time with Lloyd's by now hard and fast thrusts.

Lloyd groaned Zelos's name lowly, nibbling on the redhead's ear. He could feel Zelos's hand stroking himself when the back of Zelos's hand would touch against his chest. Zelos was muttering in comprehensible things, constantly pushing up into Lloyd's hips and his own hand.

It was Lloyd who came first with a loud moan, hips freezing deep inside Zelos. Zelos tried to last longer but the feeling of Lloyd's cum leaking into him sent him over the edge with a scream of the brunette's name that would've sent Lloyd over the edge again if he wasn't so tired from exertion.

He pulled out slowly, collapsing half on top of Zelos and half on the cool sheets next to the redhead. When Lloyd finally stirred again, he felt Zelos stroking his hair lightly. He pushed himself bonelessly off of Zelos and landed next to the redhead on his back, starting at the ceiling. Zelos sat up more, leaning over the brunette to place a chaste kiss on his lips.

"Hi," Lloyd said lamely. The brunette let himself be moved until he was resting on his stomach, his head on Zelos's chest. Somewhere in the time that Lloyd had been resting Zelos had freed the covers from under them and was now pulling the sheet and top blankets over their naked bodies. Lloyd sighed contentedly and Zelos held him closer.

0000

Lloyd wasn't quite sure when he'd fallen asleep but he woke up to the silent falling of big puffy snowflakes outside his window. Realizing groggily that he was no longer cradled in Zelos's arms he rolled over hoping to find his shoulder again and go back to sleep for a little while.

All he found was a cold spot that Zelos had occupied only the night before.

Lloyd sat up, rubbing his eyes sleepily, looking around the room for any sign of the redhead. Zelos's clothes were gone from the floor and all of Lloyd's clothes had been neatly slung over the chairs at the table, most likely by Zelos. Puzzled, but trying to not let it get to him to much, he got up and pulled back the covers, instantly regretting as the cold air rushed over his still naked body.

He dressed rather quickly and just as he was about to grab his gloves when he noticed a note sitting next to them on the table with what looked like an orange glass paperweight.

"Hmm? Did Zelos drop this? Hey...there's a letter attached."

Lloyd picked up the orange orb which was about half the size his fist and read the note.

_This is a symbol of my trust. Hang on to it for me, okay? I don't have the right to ask for your forgiveness, but I still want you to forgive me._

_P.S. Don't tell the others._

"What the?" Lloyd reread the note again, still as confused as the first time he'd read it. 'Why would he need forgiveness from me...other than leaving me to wake up on my own but I'm not that angry...' Lloyd shook his head in frustration. "Man, what the heck is he trying to say? He should make it easier to understand!"

'Guess he's back to being the old cryptic Zelos...' Lloyd thought. He snorted, folding up the letter and putting it in his pocket, and then putting the orange orb in his pocket too, which he noted upon closer inspection was glowing when he touched it.

Shaking his head again as he put on his gloves he muttered something about how maybe Sheena was right with calling Zelos 'Idiot Chosen'.

0000

Upon exiting the inn he found that the other's who had gone to bring the doctor to Altessa were back. "Guys! How's Altessa?!"

Genis who was standing right near the inn door kicking snow around answered. "He somehow managed to recover. That annoying doctor was really as good as they said. Some people from Mizuho are watching over him just in case." His answer was rather curt and informative but Lloyd chalked it up to Genis just being surly because he didn't like the doctor very much either.

"That's good to hear." Lloyd nodded and everyone seemed to group in a circle in the square in front of the inn. It was the same square he and Zelos had talked in just the night before but it seemed a lot different now. Zelos was there, he was standing on the other end of the circle between Sheena and Raine. 'How typical...' Lloyd thought grudgingly.

"I need to talk to you all about the plan. But why don't we go outside the city where it's a little more private?" He suggested and the others all nodded and started walking towards the city exit. Zelos began to walk away, following close behind the others.

"Zelos!" Lloyd called and the redhead stopped at the bottom of the steps, turning to face Lloyd. He could think of a lot of things he wanted to say to Zelos. 'Why'd you leave this morning?' or 'what the heck was with that note?' But the only thing that came out was: "...Zelos, I trust you."

Zelos smiled softly at him, eyes portraying the subdued expression he'd seen last night out in the snow. He could see the shift as Zelos put up his usual front again; the others were in earshot after all. "Wh...What are you talking about?" He shrugged nonchalantly. "Well of course I can understand that you're counting on me. Just place your faith in me!"

Lloyd knew that was cryptic Zelos talk for something, but let it pass. "Faith, huh. I hope so." He responded in what he hoped was the same cryptic language Zelos had been using.

Zelos smirked for a moment knowingly. "Yeah, yeah," He waved away the words like they were flying straight at him, "come on, let's go!"

Lloyd followed Zelos and met him at the bottom of the steps, picking up the pace to catch up with the others. He was still trying to decipher both the letter Zelos had left him and what Zelos had said. He would've asked the redhead directly but he knew Zelos would shake it off as if the note and the exchange had never happened.

It would take him almost the whole ride to the Tower of Salvation to figure out what Zelos had said, and a whole lot longer to interpret that note.

0000

A/N: Oh my god this took me forever and a half to write! I blame several things for the delay (and none of those reasons are my own fault of course! Ha! Just kidding!) Mostly, I underestimated how hard it would be to weave the game dialogue with the story I wanted. I'm happy with the outcome _now_ but it was a long road in coming. I hope people liked it. There will be a fourth chapter but my editor and I need to get farther in Symphonia first. (I've played but I refuse to spoil any more for her) Anyway, sorry for the rant at the beginning about faves being the bane of the universe. Its only that while I was really stuck on this fic I'd look forward so much to seeing email in my mail box from saying I had things on this fic and to find it just a fave rather than a review kinda got me down and made me more writer's blocked to write this fic. Remember, reviews truly are a writer's crack, and we write better crack for you when we're high on it so please review and sit tight for part 4!

Also, the script I used to write this fic with the exact dialogue was taken from gamefaqs. If you would like to see it, either follow the link on my homepage ( won't let me put the URL in this thing) Or just look it up on their site under Tales of Symphonia FAQS. It's listed as Game Script.


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